The radical notion that women like good movies
Movie poster for The Fighter This guest post by Jessica Freeman-Slade previously appeared at Bitch Flicks on February 2, 2011. The adage of “Behind every good man is a great woman” is worn out, particularly in the realm of boxing movies. You can reduce the entirety of Rocky to the battered Stallone’s anguished cry of … Continue reading “Women in Sports Week: A Review of ‘The Fighter’”
Father of the Bride Values Relationships With Women by Mab Ryan Father of the Bride (1991) is aptly named, as its focus is not on the wedding itself or the couple involved but on the titular character’s neuroses and journey to maturity. The wedding is the backdrop and the incident that provokes growth in the … Continue reading “Wedding Week: The Roundup”
This is a guest post by Jessica Freeman-Slade. As much as they contain all the elements of great cinema—gorgeous photography, lighting, costumes—weddings are hard to capture on film because their machinations and motivations are so terribly complicated. Even a film like Father of the Bride can’t distance itself from the fact that weddings are logistical … Continue reading “Wedding Week: You’re Nobody Till Somebody Loves You: ‘Muriel’s Wedding’ and the Promise of Bridal Transformation”
Period dress This is a guest post by Jessica Freeman-Slade. Name more than five novels in which sex, and all its consequences, takes center stage. OK, you’ve got The Story of O, Justine (the infamous novel written by the Marquis de Sade), Lady Chatterley’s Lover, and of course, the juggernaut 50 Shades of Gray trilogy… … Continue reading “Classic Literature Film Adaptations Week: Slut-Shaming in the 1700s: ‘Dangerous Liaisons’ and ‘Cruel Intentions’”
This is a guest post by Jessica Freeman-Slade. When I think of the inspiring women in the books I read as a kid, I don’t think of the girls my age like Ramona Quimby or Harriet Welsh. No, when I was 10 years old, I wanted, more than anything, to be Josephine “Jo” March, the … Continue reading “Classic Literature Film Adaptations Week: Hellraisers in Hoop Skirts: Gillian Armstrong’s Proudly Feminist ‘Little Women’”
Pop-Tarts and Pizza: Food, Gender, and Class in Gilmore Girls by Brianna Low While it could be argued that it is somewhat progressive of the Gilmore Girls series to portray two women who have no hang-ups about publicly consuming large amounts of food, it is important to remember that despite their voracious appetites, Rory and … Continue reading “Gender and Food Week: The Roundup”
Meryl Streep and Steve Martin in It’s Complicated This guest post is written by Jessica Freeman-Slade. Early in the 1954 film Sabrina — the original, starring Audrey Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart — the titular ingenue finds herself at a cooking school in Paris. Sent over as a gift from her father’s employer, the wealthy Larabee … Continue reading “Gender & Food Week: A Woman’s Place in the Kitchen: The Cinematic Tradition of Cooking to Catch a Man”
Rock of Ages Warms Your 80s-Loving Little Heart With a Cheesy Two-Hour Music Video by Candice Frederick Even though its finest moments all boil down to well-intentioned, high energy karaoke numbers, and its script (co-written by Justin Theroux) left more cheese in the recipe than what was called for, Rock of Ages is still great … Continue reading “Women and Gender in Musicals Week: The Roundup”
This is a guest review by Jessica Freeman-Slade. When Bitch Flicks first put out the call for a review of the movie musical landscape, this was the first movie that came to mind. It has all the elements of a great movie musical: the hummable ditties of Kiss Me, Kate, the buoyant dance sequences of … Continue reading “Women and Gender in Musicals Week: Bros Before Hoes, or How Kidnapping Makes for Great Dance Numbers: on ‘Seven Brides for Seven Brothers’”
This is a guest review by Jessica Freeman-Slade. I imagine that at least once a day somewhere in America, some little Jewish girl (or girls with big noses, close-set eyes, skinny legs, and less than model looks) has a benevolent mother, sister, or aunt who pops in a DVD and tells her to sit down. … Continue reading “Women and Gender in Musicals Week: The Funny Face Always Gets the Big Number: on ‘Funny Girl’”
